Macroscopic Plant Remains from Mediterranean Caves and Rockshelters: Avenues of Interpretation

Abstract

Macrobotanical remains from caves and rockshelters in the Mediterranean provide substantial information about past human use of the sites as well as the surrounding environment. The modes of deposition of both fresh and carbonized plant material in the past are varied and it is not always possible to distinguish among the geogenic, biogenic, and anthropogenic processes. Once deposited, seeds and other plant parts may be preserved through desiccation, mineralization, or, most commonly, carbonization, depending on the environment of the cave or rockshelter as well as human and other animal activities. It is assumed that large quantities of carbonized remains are the result of human activity, and such dense deposits can be used as a measure of the intensity of occupation of the site. Where sufficient remains of wood charcoal are recovered from stratified deposits, it is possible to identify the local vegetation and changes in the surrounding plant communities through time. When compared to other environmental information, such as pollen studies, it is possible to obtain a more complete picture of the environment and to identify refugia for Mediterranean plants during the Pleistocene. In some cases, plants that are underrepresented or not at all represented in pollen spectra from lacustrine deposits may be recovered from the archaeological sites. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.